Finding the Words • What If?

About This Episode

Two little words have the power to change HOW we communicate, and HOW we connect with and understand one another as a result. Those two words? What if?

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• Episode Transcript

  A friend of mine is an advertising executive responsible for art directing several well-known and well-loved consumer campaigns. Over the past 2 decades, her work has moved millions of people to action, in support of dozens of brands and causes.

  In a recent conversation, we talked about the power of communications, and the role that communicators—in big agencies and small— can play in shaping opinions, shaping perceptions, and shaping movements. Our decisions as creative directors can either break stereotypes or reinforce them. They can challenge narratives or perpetuate them.

  As we talked, it became abundantly clear that two little words have the power to change HOW we communicate, and HOW we connect with and understand one another as a result.

  Those two words: What if?

  What if we— the global community of communicators, marketers, designers—took every opportunity we had to shift how messages are told? What if we took every opportunity to explore the standards and norms that exist in our communications, and then shifted those norms to inform even more inclusive, accessible, and equitable messages? And what might be the long-term effect on our communities, on society, on our world?

  I have long believed that communication is the greatest tool to advance social justice. I have seen time and again what is truly possible when we dare to ask “What If?” and then lean into imagining and asking what’s possible through communications.

  Here are some ways I’ve seen this work remarkably well:

  * A public health communicator wants to change the face of public health in the US and launches a 40 Under 40 list to celebrate an entire generation of innovators, entrepreneurs, and equity champions who are influencing the field;

  * A centuries-old nonprofit celebrates the power of young changemakers by shifting away from the long-established spokesperson to a vibrant team of young people who show the power of this brand in action;

  * And one of the biggest consumer brands in the world uses its platform to show thereal experiences of women navigating postpartum, showing what a brand can do with its platform to widen the lens on a critical issue.

  Whether you manage a big brand or a small startup, a team of thousands or a team of two, there is power in every single one of your communications decisions: power to shift and shape narratives for good.

  So, I dare you to ask (and then explore more deeply) how your team and your organization communicates. Document what you learn and consider what you can change as a result. Then ask again and again, what if? What if you re-imagined some of your most expected and established communications to increase accessibility, to bridge communications divides, and to celebrate our differences?

  Dare to ask, “What if?” I guarantee the answer will inspire you.